Election 2013: Marianne Garvens claims election gaffe

FREEPORT — Stephenson County Clerk Vici Otte dismissed a last-minute claim Tuesday that results of the hotly contested Freeport mayoral race should be thrown out because Marianne Garvens was not allowed to run as a write-in candidate for the city’s top job.

By Nick Crow

Journal Standard

By Nick Crow

Posted Apr. 10, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Apr 10, 2013 at 9:01 AM

By Nick Crow

Posted Apr. 10, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Apr 10, 2013 at 9:01 AM

FREEPORT — Stephenson County Clerk Vici Otte dismissed a last-minute claim Tuesday that results of the hotly contested Freeport mayoral race should be thrown out because Marianne Garvens was not allowed to run as a write-in candidate for the city’s top job.

Garvens made the charge Tuesday, claiming that Otte’s office neglected to include her on Freeport general election ballots.

“She did not file her declaration on the deadline to file a declaration,” said Otte said. “The deadline to extend that would have needed an appeal filed, which was not done.”

Garvens was removed Jan. 17 as an independent candidate for mayor after an objection by Kathy Knodle was filed and upheld.

“She was removed for a lack of signatures and did not appeal that to the circuit court,” said Shawn Boldt, who served on the Electoral Commission. “By not appealing she lost that avenue and her only option was to file as a write-in.“

Garvens cites 10 ILCS 5/17- 16.1 which says “whenever an objection to a candidate’s nominating papers or petitions for any office is sustained after the 61st day before the election, the candidate may file a notarized declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for that office with the proper election authority or authorities no later than seven days prior to the election.” Garvens said that she raised this issue with Otte when she noticed she had been left off the ballot as a write-in but nothing was done.

Otte said that this statute only comes into play when the objection is sustained after the 61st day before an election and that Garvens’ objection was before the 61st day.

Therefore, Garvens’ deadline was Feb. 7 she said. She added that because of this her “hands are tied.”

“At one point in time seven days was the deadline but the laws were changed when the systems changed to electronic,” Otte said.

Garvens’ claim won’t prevent the outcome of the mayoral race from being certified as legitimate, Otte said. A special election could be required if fault was found.

“I can’t see any reason why there would be a special election,” Otte said. “There’s a process that needs to be followed and she never appealed the Electoral Commission’s decision. Unless I have a court that tells me something, there is nothing I can do and I have no record of anything being filed with the courts. So the process goes on.”